Can Mindfulness Meditation Work for Addiction?

Mindfulness means staying in the present moment. It allows those with a substance abuse disorder to work through their difficult moments in a healthy way. How can mindfulness meditation work for addiction? When you practice mindfulness, you learn to push aside negative thoughts and emotions. This helps those addicted to alcohol and drugs respond to pressure and anxiety in ways that strengthen their resolve. Learn more about mindfulness meditation, available at Promises Behavioral Health.

Mindfulness Explained

Dr. Jon Kabat-Zin developed the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction or MBSR technique. This program uses mindfulness to get participants to pay attention in a certain way. During meditation, you focus on the present moment without judgment. In one application, MBSR teaches those with chronic pain or mental illness to improve their lives.

Can mindfulness meditation work for addiction treatment? Those with substance abuse disorders can learn to reduce unwanted anxiety and stress one moment at a time. Therefore, mindfulness techniques form a crucial part of drug addiction treatment at Promises Behavioral Health.

We use mindfulness in our men’s addiction treatment center and women’s addiction treatment center. When you’re recovering from addiction, mindfulness helps you stay in the moment and analyze your thoughts and feelings. It’s important to withhold judgment during this process. It’s a crucial component of recovery. In fact, mindfulness meditation helps you develop resiliency to resist your cravings during and after recovery.

Can Mindfulness Meditation Work for Addiction?

Can mindfulness meditation work for addiction? Yes, you can practice mindfulness during recovery using yoga, body scans, meditation, deep breathing, and walks in a natural setting.

During addiction treatment, if you go through physical and mental withdrawal symptoms, mindfulness techniques can help. You may also have a dual diagnosis of anxiety or depression. In our dual diagnosis treatment center, we teach clients how to self-soothe and ease the intense emotions that arise.

In most psychotherapy techniques, you become aware of each moment and learn to substitute positive thoughts and actions for negative ones.

Here are some of the individual and group therapy approaches used at Promises Behavioral Health:

Drug rehab

Dual diagnosis

Drug rehab for professionals

Mental health programs

Non-12-step programs

Inpatient anxiety treatment

Inpatient depression treatment

CBT and MBSR

According to research, mindfulness-based programs using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy show clients techniques to stave off a relapse and adopt a healthy life.

These coping techniques include:

Recognizing events that trigger difficult moments.

Pausing before reacting in impulsive behavior.

Identifying the reason for cravings.

Replacing the urge to use drugs with more positive behavior.

Can mindfulness meditation work for addiction?

Mindfulness meditation can help clients achieve the following goals:

Practice nonjudgmental acceptance of each moment.

Respond to a present situation in a positive way.

Remain aware instead of reacting too quickly.

As part of a substance abuse recovery program, mindfulness techniques help clients cultivate self-compassion. During therapy, you learn to treat yourself kindly.

The Brain on Meditation

During mindfulness meditation, the brain reacts in positive ways. Your brain processes emotions in the amygdala. When you meditate, the parasympathetic system counters anxiety responses. Consequently, your heart rate slows, your breathing deepens, and the production of cortisol and adrenaline decreases.

Mindfulness Meditation

At Promises Behavioral Health, we believe in the power of positive thinking. Can mindfulness meditation work for addiction? Mindfulness builds new neural connections so you can rewire your brain. Additionally, this increases your positive results over time. Contact us at 844.875.5609 to learn more about how we incorporation mindfulness meditation into our substance abuse recovery programs.